My name is Amy, I'm 40 years old, and live in a small town in Iowa. I am blessed with a great husband, two beautiful daughters, and a wonderful son-in-law. And in July we'll have a grandbaby :-)

I was diagnosed with Lupus 17 years ago and was in total denial. My mother passed away at the age of 57 (wow, almost 11 years ago) with complications to her Systemic Lupus. In helping take care of her, I realized that I certainly did not want Lupus. And besides, I was young, healthy, and felt just fine- well, for the most part. So I didn't go to the doctor after being diagnosed. Stupid me!! A couple of years ago, I started having what I thought to be a bad Lupus flare. I went to the rheumatologist (actually seeing two different ones in the office). They aren't quite sure what's going on with the Lupus part. For now there are saying my main issues are: Fibromyalgia, Myofacial Pain, Chronic Pain, Anemia, IBS, Fatigue, Depression, Anxiety, High BP, etc.

Here at MDJunction.com, I'm also a member of the following support groups: Fibromyalgia, Lupus, Chronic Pain, Chronic-Intractable Pain, and Depression.

I am honored to be a group leader for the Fibromyalgia, Chronic Pain, and Chronic-Intractable Pain Support Groups. I'm looking forward to offering comfort and support to others. Hopefully, I can provide some valuable feedback as well. I want everyone to know that they can PM me anytime, whether it's a group issue or concern, or needing personal comfort and support. I am here for everyone! If someone's having trouble in figuring out how to navigate around the site; like using the diary, how to post or respond to a post, or use the message tools, etc. I'll be happy to provide guidance for that process as well.

I hope to bring encouragement, laughter, friendship, comfort, and support to the groups. I look forward to meeting everyone! :-)